Samantha Bee interviews Trump supporters

Samantha Bee interviewed a group of Donald Trump supporters on Monday’s Full Frontal in an attempt to find out whether the increasingly problematic behavior seen at his rallies is emblematic of his entire fanbase. Against stereotype, these supporters were young, college-educated, multi-ethnic, and bipartisan. Yet they all vigorously defended Trump as Bee brought up criticisms.

When Bee asked about Trump’s call for a ban on Muslims entering the United States, the whole group said at once, “temporary ban.” Some of them added that it was the media’s fault for focusing too much on Trump’s Muslim comments, but as Bee pointed out, Trump is the one who says these things — the media just covers him. Bee then asked how the supporters felt about being associated with white supremacists (such as former KKK leader David Duke, who recently endorsed Trump). When one member fired back that it’s not cool to play “the guilt-by-association game,” Bee countered that that’s exactly what Trump and his fans are doing by threatening to ban Muslims from entering the country.

Later, Bee threw a small party for the group, which was her promise in order to get them to talk to her. There, she confronted some of the members individually. She was particularly interested by the group’s one black member. When Bee asked him about Trump’s racist rhetoric, the supporter said that Trump “speaks in an old way.” As he walked away, Bee mused, “Watching someone choke down a piece of their soul just to belong broke my fact-checker.”